Week one:I was recently in Indiana visiting family for the holidays. There, I noticed a distinct difference in my clothing versus the clothing of people who lived there. Residents focussed on practicality when choosing their outfits: water resistant boots, layers of clothing, bulky jackets. In the South, we can dress more according to how we choose since our climate is much more mild. Week two:I recently went to Inoko's where the chiefs prepare food in front of you. My boyfriend and I shared a table with two African American families, and the chef was hispanic. It was fascinating to see how these different cultures related as we all shared a meal together. One of the other families was loud and outgoing with two young children. The other group was almost completely silent through the entire meal. We conversed a great deal with the hispanic chef and learned that he has two young daughters. Jan 21stYesterday I sat on the bus with two African American ladies. They were on a business conference, and one had soft "American" curls while the other had traditional braided hair. They began talking about what professional hair should look like for African American women - should they keep it slicked back, should it be straighten, are braids professional? They never came to a consensus about their hair, but I found their conversation very interesting! Feb 2ndYesterday at my church's Wednesday night gathering, a parent and I were discussing the benefits and downsides to living in Oconee County. She said she loves the small town community, but that "her children stare and point if they see a black person" because they so rarely interact with African Americans. Feb 6thI was listening to Pandora over the weekend, and for the first time, I heard an add in Spanish. This really struck me as interesting because I signed into Pandora over my Facebook page, so the website knows my race and background. I think this is a good development overall as far as Pandora's adds go, but it still took me a little by surprise when I suddenly heard Spanish coming out of my computer! Feb 15thOne of my dance friends last night asked me if I had had formal voice training. I tend to speak precisely and annunciate my words, so I get asked this a lot. He then asked me to pronounce several regional words and proceeded to tell me what areas I pronounced words like. Not surprisingly, he said I had an archaic, almost British sound to my speech. He told me I don't belong in the South! Feb 22ndOn Monday I was driving through 5 Points, and my friend and I saw about 6 white young men shooting a music video. What got our attention was that they were dressed very much like typical African American rappers. They were also dancing in a very African style, but it gave my friend and I a good laugh because here were these white guys trying very hard (and failing) to mimic famous African American performers... Feb 28thI watched a video today of President Trump signing two bills that would put more women into science, engineering, and space technology fields. If I remember correctly, he said only 1 in 4 women who receives a degree in one of these fields actually goes on to work in that field.http://www.chicksontheright.com/president-trump-signs-two-bills-encouraging-women-pursue-careers-science-business/ March 14thAn interesting article on EU companies now allowing the banning of open religious symbols such as headscarves. Many companies claim to want to present "a neutral image" to their customers, so they want to remove any religious association from their workers' dress.https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/mar/14/employers-can-ban-staff-from-wearing-headscarves-european-court-rules March 22ndImmigrants are still fearing deportation and long questioning. Though the initial fear of being ordered to go home immediately seems to have dissipated some, individuals are experiencing tension and uncertainty. This article tells how families are preparing for any questions they may receive and how organizations are giving advice to fearful parents.http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/20/us/immigrants-catholic-charities-legal-advice/?iid=ob_homepage_deskrecommended_pool March 30thRecently, India passed a bill giving longer paid maternity leave to women. Supporters of the bill say it will put more women in the workplace long term when they see that can have financial security even while taking off time to raise a small child. Those who are against the new order say that the bill does not provide any support to the companies who are paying for these women's maternity leave. An interesting situation to consider as gender roles change about who cares for kids, and also as more women seek to enter the workplace...http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/30/news/economy/india-maternity-leave-law-employment-hiring/index.html April 7thIn my PR class, we discussed the new (now removed) Pepsi ad that featured a protest and model, Kenndall Jenner. People felt it made light of the Black Lives Matter movement when a white young women "fixed" the protest by handing a policeman a bottle of Pepsi. It also featured people of different races, but both the policeman and the main feature were white.https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/business/kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad.html?_r=0 April 12thA group of Oklahoma LGBT students recently felt insulted on their trip to the Capitol building when the staff was warned ahead of time that "cross-dressers were in the building." They felt that this was a derogatory name for them and were upset that separate bathrooms were arranged for the staff.http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/12/us/lgbt-students-oklahoma-capitol-trnd/index.html April 17thA fascinating article! It regards the "Fearless Girl" statue which was installed on Wall Street. The original artist of the Charging Bull has complained that the girl changes the meaning of his work by making it sinister and threatening. I completely sympathize with his concerns because no artist should have their work changed or altered without their permission! http://www.newsy.com/stories/artist-behind-charging-bull-wants-fearless-girl-to-go/?&utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Boosting
Week two:I recently went to Inoko's where the chiefs prepare food in front of you. My boyfriend and I shared a table with two African American families, and the chef was hispanic. It was fascinating to see how these different cultures related as we all shared a meal together. One of the other families was loud and outgoing with two young children. The other group was almost completely silent through the entire meal. We conversed a great deal with the hispanic chef and learned that he has two young daughters.
Jan 21stYesterday I sat on the bus with two African American ladies. They were on a business conference, and one had soft "American" curls while the other had traditional braided hair. They began talking about what professional hair should look like for African American women - should they keep it slicked back, should it be straighten, are braids professional? They never came to a consensus about their hair, but I found their conversation very interesting!
Feb 2ndYesterday at my church's Wednesday night gathering, a parent and I were discussing the benefits and downsides to living in Oconee County. She said she loves the small town community, but that "her children stare and point if they see a black person" because they so rarely interact with African Americans.
Feb 6thI was listening to Pandora over the weekend, and for the first time, I heard an add in Spanish. This really struck me as interesting because I signed into Pandora over my Facebook page, so the website knows my race and background. I think this is a good development overall as far as Pandora's adds go, but it still took me a little by surprise when I suddenly heard Spanish coming out of my computer!
Feb 15thOne of my dance friends last night asked me if I had had formal voice training. I tend to speak precisely and annunciate my words, so I get asked this a lot. He then asked me to pronounce several regional words and proceeded to tell me what areas I pronounced words like. Not surprisingly, he said I had an archaic, almost British sound to my speech. He told me I don't belong in the South!
Feb 22ndOn Monday I was driving through 5 Points, and my friend and I saw about 6 white young men shooting a music video. What got our attention was that they were dressed very much like typical African American rappers. They were also dancing in a very African style, but it gave my friend and I a good laugh because here were these white guys trying very hard (and failing) to mimic famous African American performers...
Feb 28thI watched a video today of President Trump signing two bills that would put more women into science, engineering, and space technology fields. If I remember correctly, he said only 1 in 4 women who receives a degree in one of these fields actually goes on to work in that field.http://www.chicksontheright.com/president-trump-signs-two-bills-encouraging-women-pursue-careers-science-business/
March 14thAn interesting article on EU companies now allowing the banning of open religious symbols such as headscarves. Many companies claim to want to present "a neutral image" to their customers, so they want to remove any religious association from their workers' dress.https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/mar/14/employers-can-ban-staff-from-wearing-headscarves-european-court-rules
March 22ndImmigrants are still fearing deportation and long questioning. Though the initial fear of being ordered to go home immediately seems to have dissipated some, individuals are experiencing tension and uncertainty. This article tells how families are preparing for any questions they may receive and how organizations are giving advice to fearful parents.http://www.cnn.com/2017/03/20/us/immigrants-catholic-charities-legal-advice/?iid=ob_homepage_deskrecommended_pool
March 30thRecently, India passed a bill giving longer paid maternity leave to women. Supporters of the bill say it will put more women in the workplace long term when they see that can have financial security even while taking off time to raise a small child. Those who are against the new order say that the bill does not provide any support to the companies who are paying for these women's maternity leave. An interesting situation to consider as gender roles change about who cares for kids, and also as more women seek to enter the workplace...http://money.cnn.com/2017/03/30/news/economy/india-maternity-leave-law-employment-hiring/index.html
April 7thIn my PR class, we discussed the new (now removed) Pepsi ad that featured a protest and model, Kenndall Jenner. People felt it made light of the Black Lives Matter movement when a white young women "fixed" the protest by handing a policeman a bottle of Pepsi. It also featured people of different races, but both the policeman and the main feature were white.https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/05/business/kendall-jenner-pepsi-ad.html?_r=0
April 12thA group of Oklahoma LGBT students recently felt insulted on their trip to the Capitol building when the staff was warned ahead of time that "cross-dressers were in the building." They felt that this was a derogatory name for them and were upset that separate bathrooms were arranged for the staff. http://www.cnn.com/2017/04/12/us/lgbt-students-oklahoma-capitol-trnd/index.html
April 17thA fascinating article! It regards the "Fearless Girl" statue which was installed on Wall Street. The original artist of the Charging Bull has complained that the girl changes the meaning of his work by making it sinister and threatening. I completely sympathize with his concerns because no artist should have their work changed or altered without their permission!
http://www.newsy.com/stories/artist-behind-charging-bull-wants-fearless-girl-to-go/?&utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Boosting